


Ph-Freakin'-D

by maaaaa



Category: The Sentinel (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-02-22 23:02:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23568463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maaaaa/pseuds/maaaaa
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	Ph-Freakin'-D

The alley smelled like day after collection rubbish, rinsed off by the night’s rain. Sunshine leaked in the same way it always did in the early morning, making the pavement glisten and plunging the nooks and crannies of the backside of Prospect into shadow-y angles.

Blair trudged toward the dumpster lugging the last load of the leftovers of his time spent at the loft. The box was crumpled around the edges, not unlike Blair’s mood, and he shifted its weight as he walked, to prevent it from splitting open.

When he reached the dumpster, he heaved the box up onto the lip of the container, steadying it with one hand, as he flipped the lid up with the other. Without a second thought, he gave the box a shove, sending it into the bin. He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath before reaching into one of his pockets.

He pulled out a piece of paper, folded several times into a lopsided little square, and carefully peeled it open. The corners were tattered, the edges raggedy. He studied what was written on it for a moment before reading one of the lines aloud.

“Dr. Blair Sandburg,” he rasped.

Blair smiled crookedly at his sixteen year old penmanship. He could actually remember the day he wrote it, just wanting to see what it would look like.

The next line was printed in large block letters.

“Doctor Blair J. Sandburg,” he murmured with a rueful chuckle.

Variations of his name, in an assortment of handwriting styles, littered the page and he read each one.

“Dr. B.J. Sandburg.”

“B.J. Sandburg PhD.”

“Blair J. Sandburg PhD.”

Over and over and over.

Blair bit his lip and slowly choked out the last line.

“Dr. Blair Jacob Sandburg PhD.”

Blair ran his fingertips across the page, hoping he could feel one more time what he had felt when he’d written the words. He shook his head wearily and re-folded the paper once, then tore it into strips, and then into smaller strips, and finally into tiny bits.

He held a fistful of his dream to his chest for a moment as pieces escaped his grasp and fluttered to the ground. Then he tossed what was left into the dumpster, and brought the lid down with a loud clang.

Blair shrugged, shook himself, shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket, and strolled out of the alley…to where Jim was waiting.


End file.
